Obon in 2022 is over today.  Each household also folds the offerings in front of the Buddhist altar, lights the bonfire with a flint, and sends the Buddha off.  In the old days, people used to go to a nearby river, perform these kinds of Buddhist rituals, and run offerings into the river.  In recent years, it is prohibited in many rivers because it is treated as garbage waste.  And most of all, in Kansai, today is the “Kyoto Gozan no Okuribi”.  It’s the first time in three years that the event has been held, and many people are already flocking to Kyoto in the daytime. At night, the mountains surrounding Kyoto city are lit up with flames of “Large,” “Myoho,” “Funagata,” “Left Daimonji,” and “Torii”. The flames are said to send the spirits of the dead, called shorai-san, to the afterlife.  It is said that more than 100,000 people come to watch the Gozan no Okuribi even on weekdays, but this year, even more people are expected.

2022年のお盆も今日でお終い。各家庭でも仏壇の前のお供物をたたみ、火打ち石で送り火を灯し、仏様をお送りします。昔は近くの川に行って、こうした仏事を行い、お供物などを川に流したものです。近年はゴミ廃棄物として処理される為、多くの河川では禁止されています。そして何と言っても、関西では、今日行われる『京都五山の送り火』です。３年ぶりの開催ということで、もう多くの人達が昼間から京都に押し寄せているそうです。夜ともなれば、京都市を囲む山々に炎の「大」「妙法」「船形」「左大文字」「鳥居形」が次々に浮かび上がります。その炎で、お精霊（しょらい）さんと呼ばれる死者の霊をあの世へ送り届けるとされています。 五山の送り火の見物客は平日でも10万人を超えるといわれますが、今年はより一層の人出が予想すれます。